Spoilers: If you haven't read Mog's "A Birthday in the Present", Kris's "Happy Anniversary, Mr. Larabee", or Winter's "Fishing: ATF Style" or her "Through the Glass Darkly" , I highly recommend them.  If you haven't, its okay, I just reference them.  If you want to read them, they're on Maggie's ATF Alternate Universe Website.  I hope that these authors will be okay with my referencing their stories, if you're one of these authors, and you're not okay with it, please let me know and I'll change my story.  Thanks.

Disclaimer: Not mine.  If they were, they would have never been taken off the air.

Rating: PG13 for some violence and language

Feedback: Yes, please, any and all kind.
 

By: Lady Angel @ thien_than_23@hotmail.com
 

It had been a gruelling month for Chris Larabee and his men.  Three different cases had been dropped in their laps without notice and they all had to be solved ASAP, according to Federal Judge Orrin Travis. And they did it too.  Not that the Judge expected otherwise, they were the best ATF team this side of the Mississippi.  So because of their outstanding work on the cases, Judge Travis had rewarded them with a week off to celebrate Thanksgiving with their families.

The funny thing was, other than Ezra Standish's mother, Maude, none of the other men had families to celebrate the holidays with, and even Ezra was hesitant to join his mother in Europe for Thanksgiving.  As far as the seven men were concerned their only real family was here in Four Corners.  Previous Thanksgivings found them working cases, so for the past three years, it wasn't a problem.  But this was the first Thanksgiving that the entire team was off, so that's why Thanksgiving morning found Chris frantically running around his large ranch, cleaning like a maniac and mumbling under his breath that he should have never opened his big mouth. . .

"So, Chris, got any plans for Thanksgiving?"  Vin Tanner sipped his coffee, and looked at his leader, his big brother, Chris Larabee. It was Friday morning and everyone was there to wrap up any last minute work before their week long vacation.

"You know, I haven't celebrated Thanksgiving since Sarah and Adam died.  Seemed kinda useless to celebrate without any family to celebrate with."  Chris drank his coffee with relish, thanking God that he had made it instead of Vin, who usually made coffee so strong you could pave roads with it.

"Well, what about Miz Mary and Billy?"  Vin couldn't help it, he was a certified matchmaker when it came to Chris and Mary.

"They're spending Thanksgiving with the Judge and Evie.  And what makes you think that they would even want to spend the weekend with me?  I'm not family."

Everyone and their mother knew that Chris and Mary had feelings for each other, they just wouldn't act on it.  Their relationship reminded Vin of the X-files' Mulder and Scully, just plain wasting time.

"So whattcha doin' for Thanksgiving?"  Chris thought turnabout was fair play.

"Hmm, nothing either."  Was the sharpshooter's reply.

"Wanna come to the ranch?  I just got some new horses that need to be broken in."

"Yeah, sure, that sounds great!"  Vin smiled, Thanksgiving with Chris, it sounded real nice.

So he had Vin coming over, okay, not a bad thing.  Vin came over all the time to ride the horses, not a big deal.  But then he bumped into the Dynamic Duo. . .

"Buck, I am not going to let you cook Thanksgiving dinner!  Remember what happened the last time you tried to cook?  The fire marshal had to evacuated the building 'cause there was so much smoke!"  JD Dunne was adamant about this, there was absolutely no way in hell he was going to let Buck cook again.  They had survived this long on takeout, another day wouldn't matter.

"Awww, c'mon kid, it wasn't that bad!"  Buck Wilmington looked in disbelief at his roommate and 'little brother'.

"Hell, yeah, it was that bad.  I still have the citation the fire marshal gave us!"

The argument would have continued until Christmas if Chris hadn't stepped in.

"Buck.  JD."  When Chris used that tone of voice, he reminded everyone of a big brother, stopping the little ones from fighting.

"Yes, Chris?"  JD and Buck had the 'we're-innocent-we-didn't-do-anything' tone down pat.

"Vin's coming over for Thanksgiving, plannin' on breaking some horses in, care tha join us?"

"Really, Chris?"  JD was getting totally psyched about this, Thanksgiving at Chris's ranch!  Riding horses, spending time with his 'big brothers' and his idol. . .TOO COOL!

"Hey, that's a great idea!  Sure, we're in."  Buck couldn't remember the last time Chris celebrated a family type holiday since Sarah's and Adam's deaths, maybe, just maybe, the old Chris was coming back.

That invitation was just as easy as the first one.  No sweat. The guys were always welcomed at the ranch.  And so, having already invited most of the team, Chris went ahead and invited the rest of them.  Josiah and Nathan grinned, both happy to come over.  In fact, Josiah offered to make his famous chilli for dinner.  His offer was meet with overwhelming enthusiasm.  Even Ezra said yes to the invitation, stating that he would bring the refreshments, claiming that no one else could be trusted to select a wine appropriate for the occasion.

Okay, so far so good, but then Chris got a phone call from Miss Nettie Wells.  She wanted the boys to come her ranch for Thanksgiving.  Thanks to JD, via Casey, Miss Nettie found out that they were going to be in town for the holidays.

"Actually, ma'am, the boys were coming to my place for Thanksgiving, Josiah's making chilli and Ezra's. . ."

"Chilli?!?  Chilli for Thanksgiving?!?  Boy, what's wrong with you?  Chilli's for a Fourth of July bar-b-que, not Thanksgiving!  I guess I'm just goin' tha have tha come over there and make sure you boys have a decent Thanksgiving dinner!"  Good Lord, the woman even sounded intimidating over the phone!

"Miss Nettie, ma'am you don't have tha do that. . ."

"Quit sassin' me boy, just tell Vin to come get me and Casey at 8 am on Thursday.  I'll bring everything we need for dinner, just tell me how many people are coming."

"Yes, ma'am, nine total so far."  There were very few people who could cow Chris Larabee, and sure as shootin', one of them was Nettie Wells.

"I'll see you then."  With that she hung up.

When Chris told the others, they were quite happy, not only was JD going to get to spend Thanksgiving with Casey, and Vin with his substitute mother, Miss Nettie, but they were all going to get to eat her fine cooking as well.

It was a few hours later that Nathan stuck his head into Chris's office.

"Uhmm, Chris, can I talk tha ya?"

"Sure, c'mon in.  Whatcha need Nathan?"  Chris settled back into his chair and motioned the healer to the one in front of his desk.

"Well, see Chris, Rain was suppose to go skiing with some friends for Thanksgiving, but the trip fell through and since I haven't seen her for awhile, I thought that maybe. . ."

"She could come to the ranch."  Chris smiled, he didn't know how Nathan and Rain kept their long distance relationship going for so long and keep their sanity.  "Sure, I'll just call and tell Miss Nettie."

"Thanks Chris."  Nathan beamed his incredible smile at his boss.

Chris sighed and picked up the phone.

It was later at the saloon that the next invitation was issued.  Chris and the guys had convened at their usual table for their after work drink together.  They had placed their orders with Inez and the whole time, Buck was flirting with her.  But she wasn't responding like she usually did. . .

"Aww, c'mon darlin', you can tell ole' Buck."  Buck had noticed that Inez was a bit down, usually she would give him some witty retort to his advances, this time she just avoid him.

"Please, Senor Buck, just leave me alone."  Inez was not in the mood to put up with the charming scoundrel.  She liked him, she really did, one could even say that she liked him a little more than she cared to admit, but right now just wasn't the time.

"Inez."  Buck had followed her into the kitchen and stood hovering over her shoulder as she prepared their dinners. "I'm not leavin' you alone 'til you tell me."

"It is personal, Senor Buck, please, I do not wish to discuss it."  The Hispanic woman wanted to tell him but, at the same time, did not want to burden him with it.

"Inez, tell me."  Buck's voice was soft now, not its usual loud, blustering tone.  Buck had turned her around, gently placing his hands on her shoulders and looked into her beautifully dark eyes.

"I. . . I was suppose to spend Thanksgiving with mi familia, they were suppose to come here but the Mexican federales won't let them leave and I can't go back there." Buck knew about the trouble with Don Paoblo, it was because she rejected his suit and his nearly relentless obsession with her that stopped Inez from returning to her family.

"Why are the federales stopping them from just visiting the States, they've done it before right?"  Buck was confused.

"They won't ell me why, they just won't let mi familia come this year.  I've never spent the holidays alone before."

"Aww, there darlin', don't cry, its gonna be okay, there's no way I'm lettin' you spend Thanksgiving alone."  Buck held her as she shed silent tears.  Inez missed her familia, her padre, madre, and her little brother and sister, Rafael and Adrianna.  So she stood there in Buck's big arms and silently cried.  When his words finally penetrated her mind, Inez lifted her head.

"What?  What do you mean 'not alone'?"

Buck grinned, "Well, Chris is having a little get together at his place for Thanksgiving.  Miss Nettie and Casey are gonna be there and Rain too.  How about I pick you up and you come as my date?"

"Always trying to find a way to get me to go out with you, huh?"  Inez couldn't help but tease the big man.  Her day seemed to be getting better, she had met Rain only once before, but they got along really well.  And it would be nice to spend some time with the big charmer.

"You know me, Inez, doin' anything to get a pretty lady tha smile at me."  That got him the smile he was hoping for.

"I would be honoured to go as your 'date' to Mr. Larabee's party.  Are you sure he won't mind that you invited me?"

"Nah, Chris wouldn't mind."

"Just remember, Buck, this does not mean I am going to fall into your arms whenever you want."

"Inez, if you did that, it would take all the fun out of the chase."  Buck grinned rakishly at her as he left to tell Chris.

 Okay, so the total was up to eleven now.  No problem, his place was huge, plenty of space.  Then came Ezra's little bombshell. . .

"Chris, I am very sorry to be calling so early on a Sunday morning."

"Nah, that's okay, Ez, whatcha need."

"I just called to send you my regrets at not being able to attend your Thanksgiving dinner."

"What? Why? You know the guys were looking forward to having the whole team here."

"Chris, I wish that I could come, but the circumstances have changed so that it is not possible."

"What happened, Ez?"

"It seems that my mother and her current husband are parting under some rather distressing conditions.  She is here now and as her son, it is my duty to see her through her oh so difficult time."  Ezra didn't sound like he particularly wanted to help Maude through her problems.  Actually, he sounded right down angry about having to miss the dinner to be with his mother.

"Ez, you okay?"  Chris's voice was concerned.

"Yes, I just find myself missing an occasion that I was sincerely looking forward to, just to listen to my mother bitch and whine about losing yet another obscenely rich husband that she doesn't give a rat's ass for."  Yup, Ezra wasn't a happy camper.

"Hey, Ez, why don't you bring her to the party.  I'm sure that Josiah would be more than happy to listen to her troubles and then he might be able to charm her into a nicer mood."

"Chris, that just might work!"  Ezra grinned for the first time since his mother had arrived.  If anyone could get Maude to behave it was Josiah.

"See ya Thursday, Ez."

Okay, an even dozen.  No problem, Chris's ranch hadn't seen that many people in its entire lifetime at one time, but it could deal, and so could he.  It wasn't until Tuesday morning that Chris started to panic.  Just like the other unexpected invitations, it started out with a phone call.  This time it was from Billy Travis.

"Hi Chris!"

"Hey Billy!  What's up?"

"Ma and I wanted to know if you wanna come to our house for Thanksgiving?"

"Billy, I thought that you were having Thanksgiving at the Judge's?"

"Yeah, we were suppose tha, but Grandpa had to go somewhere and Grandma went with him, so its just me and Ma.  So can you come Chris?" The boy sounded so eager, Chris didn't want to hurt him, but at the same time was relieved at not having to spend an entire evening in Mary's presence.  That would be pure torture.

"Oh, Billy, I loved to but I have a bunch of people coming to my house for the holidays."

"Oh.  Okay Chris, I guess I'll see ya later."  Lord, the boy sounded so dejected, his voice tugged at Chris's heart strings.

"Hey, Billy, how about you and your Ma come to my place for Thanksgiving?  Everyone's gonna be here and we're gonna ride the horses before dinner."  Okay, so having them over wasn't such a bad idea, he wasn't going to be alone with her, nope there were gonna be several other people there, no problem.

Yeah, right.

"Really Chris?  MA, GUESS WHAT?  CHRIS WANTS US TO GO TO HIS HOUSE FOR THANKSGIVING!"  Mary must have been in another room, 'cause Chris had to move the phone away from his ear, Billy was screaming so loud.

"Chris?"  Chris tensed as Mary's silky voice came over the phone lines.

"Hello Mary."

"I really don't want to impose."

"No, no, you wouldn't be imposing.  Miss Nettie and Casey are gonna be here, so's Rain and Inez.  Ezra's even bringing his mother.  Please come, you and Billy will have a great time."  Chris knew that the other women being there would make it easier for Mary to say yes, and Lord did he want her to say yes.

"Alright then, I'll see you on Thursday.  Thank you Chris, this means a lot to Billy. . .and me."  Mary's voice was soft and happy, a reflection of the woman herself.

Mary liked Chris, a lot.  Any excuse to spend time with him was welcomed and Billy's idea to invite him to dinner was a great one, but going to Chris's ranch was even better.  It would give her a chance to see his home and he wouldn't be that uncomfortable with so many other people around.  Of course, with so many there, it would be difficult for them to spend time alone, but at this stage, Mary didn't think that was a bad thing.

"Thursday, then."  With that Chris hung up.

And that's why Chris Larabee was up at the ungodly hour of  5 am, cleaning his house from top to bottom like a madman.  There was no way in hell he was gonna let Mary see his place like this!  [Actually, his place was pretty well kept, but in the mind of a man in -  ahem, well, you know - it just wasn't good enough! : )]

At precisely 9 am, Vin pulled up in his battered jeep and Buck and JD were right behind him.  Vin turned to help Miss Nettie out of his jeep, while Buck, Inez, JD, and Casey got out of Buck's beat up Chevy truck.  The boys helped carry in all of the supplies and Miss Nettie basically took over Chris's kitchen, shooing all the men outside and issuing them orders not to come back in until she said so.
 

An hour later, Mary and Billy pulled up the drive.  Billy immediately ran to Chris, who swung him up into his arms and returned Billy's hug.  Chris held onto Billy with one arm while the other he used to return Mary's hug.

"Thank you for inviting us, Chris." Mary whispered into his ear, sending shivers down his spine.

"Thank you for coming."  Chris steered them into the house where he nearly had his head taken off by Miss Nettie.

"Boy, I thought I told you to stay outside!"  Miss Nettie stood at the entrance of his kitchen, brandishing a wooden spoon at him.

"Its alright, Miss Nettie, Chris was just showing me the way in."  Mary decided to save Chris from the small, but menacing woman.

"Oh, Mary, good tha see ya, girl.  C'mon in, is your youngin with you?"  Miss Nettie smiled at the beautiful blonde woman before her, accepting the kiss Mary placed on her cheek.  So, the boy's finally gotten around tha asking her out here, very good.

"Hi Miss Nettie!"  Billy enthusiastically hugged the older woman.

"Well, hello there young man.  Hungry?"  Miss Nettie couldn't help the smile on her face, the boy just looked so right in Chris Larabee's arms, like he had been there since birth.

"Yes ma'am!"

"Well, here's a biscuit and some ham.  The rest is gonna have tha wait until dinner, alright?"

Billy thanked the old woman and then both he and Chris were once again thrown out.

"Hello Mary."  Mary turned to see Casey in an apron, cutting up some vegetables.

"Hi Casey, how's school?"

"I'm having lots of fun, but I'm really busy.  I haven't gotten to see JD for awhile."  Casey smiled at her, "But thanks to Mr. Larabee's invitation, I get to spend Thanksgiving with him."

"Its good to spend the holidays with familia, loved ones."  Inez joined the conversation with a slightly sad smile.  Mary walked over to the dark haired woman and gave her a hug.  When Chris told her that Inez would be joining them for the holidays, Mary immediately called her friend to find out why.

"I'm so sorry Inez."

Inez smiled back,  a happier smile this time,  "Its alright Mary, at least I can spend it with very good friends."

"And don't forget about Buck!"  Casey couldn't help teasing the older woman.  Miss Nettie and Mary both smirked at Inez, who was sputtering.

"Senor Buck is the most obnoxious, crude, gringo I have ever had the misfortune to meet!"

"He's also the funniest, kindest, and chivalrous man you've ever met too."  Mary knew that all that talk was just that, Inez really did like the rogue.

"Hurph!"  was Inez's response.
 

The next arrival was Josiah, who, even though was told that chilli was not proper Thanksgiving fare, nevertheless brought some anyway.  He deposited it in the kitchen before being kicked out by the four women.  Josiah headed over to the corral with the other men.

"Hey Josiah!"  Josiah grinned at Billy's greeting, which was repeated by the other men.

"Nate and Ez not here yet, huh?"

"Nope, Nate's gotta wait for Rain's flight from Denver and Ezra's, well, he's got his mother here, so she's gonna want tha make an entrance."  Chris didn't take his eyes from the sight of Vin quietly calming the frisky colt in the corral.

"Maude, she sure does make an impression on a man."  Josiah grinned.

"Glad, ya feel that way Josiah, 'cause she's breaking up with her husband and is gonna need a shoulder to cry on tonight, and Ezra's not up to the job."  Chris couldn't help it, he smirked in the large man's direction.  Maude would never go for Josiah, not enough money apparently, but for some unknown reason, she still liked and respected him enough to behave.

"Not a problem, Brother Chris, not a problem."  Josiah turned to watch as Vin and Buck finished putting the saddle and tack onto the roan colt.
 

It was a while later that the men heard the cultured tones call out, "Josiah!  Youhoo!  Josiah, darling!"

Josiah turned with a great big smile at the sound of Maude's voice,  "Maude! Its good to see you again."  Josiah leaned down and hug the much smaller woman, who surprisingly returned the hug without so much as a grimace.

Maude liked Josiah, she really did, he was big and strong, and his deep voice soothed her, but it was his acceptance of the way she was that held the woman's respect.  Josiah knew her faults, but still cared for her.  In other men, she would have milked it for all it was worth, but Josiah had something else that made him different from other men.  He had Ezra's respect and friendship.  None of the men of her acquaintance could even get Ezra to have a conversation with them, but Josiah could reach him as no one else could, not even her.
 

"I heard about. . ."

"Pish, today is a day of celebration, Josiah, no need to bring up unpleasant conversation.  Now, what are my son and his friends doing?  Good Heavens!  Ezra's not going to try to ride that, is he?"  Maude couldn't tear her eyes from the sight of her baby boy trying to ride a wild mustang.

"Its alright, Maude, Chris and the boys know what they're doin'.  Chris wouldn't let Ezra do somethin' stupid, like break his neck."

Maude still wasn't sure, and she nearly screamed when Buck and Vin let go of the ropes holding down the wild horse.  Maude watched as the horse reared and bucked wildly, and she feared for her son's life, but then she noticed that Josiah, Mr. Larabee and the others were cheering him on, and that Ezra was exuberantly and successfully riding the mustang.  When the horse finally decided that it was too tired to fight anymore, it tamely trotted as Ezra directed.  Maude noticed that even though Ezra was sweaty and dirty, his face was lit by a grin of satisfaction at his achievement.

Shaking her head at Ezra's idea of fun, Maude decided that she would go and 'supervise' the making of the Thanksgiving dinner, little did she know that Miss Nettie wasn't one to let anyone sit idle.

"Hell, Ez, you did it!"  Buck slapped Ezra on the back, hard enough to leave bruises, but Ezra was too happy to care.

"Fine job, Ez."  Chris smiled at him and Ezra smiled back, it felt good to have Chris praise him.   Ezra stood next to Chris as JD and Buck brought out the next mare.

Ezra had grown a lot since joining the team, he had come to learn what it was like to be part of something important, to have people care about him, to care about others.  The man next to him was one of those people.  Chris Larabee had given him not only a second but a third and a fourth chance as well.  In the begin, Ezra had been intensely jealous of the close relationships that had formed between certain team members, Josiah and Nathan, Buck and JD.  But it was Chris and Vin's close relationship that he envied the most.  But once he started to let down his guard and let Vin become his friend, he became part of Chris and Vin's circle.  He had often heard them referred to as the Triumvirate.  Ezra thought that even though fitting, it precluded the others, and it was the integration of the others that made them a whole, cohesive unit.
 

Nathan and Rain were the last to arrive that morning, Rain went directly into the house, while Nathan joined his friends at the corral.
 

The scene that Rain found in the kitchen was one of female bonding.  Everyone, including Maude, were up to their elbows in food.  Of course, Maude had complained at first, but when she noticed how much fun the others were having and at the mention of how Josiah just loved homecooking, she decided to join in.  Rain was quickly given a job and set about it happily.

"How was your trip here, Rain?"  Inez smiled as Rain handed her the cutting board.

"Hmm, the usual.  Lord, this is a really great kitchen!  You'd never think that a bachelor would have such a great cooking space!"  Rain marvelled at how well stocked the kitchen was and the easy, simple Southwestern design of the room.

"I think that Chris built it for his late wife, Sarah.  He told me she loved to cook."  Mary informed the other five women in the room.

"My dear, a man might build a kitchen for a woman, but once she is gone, he would never step foot in it again.  It seems that Mr. Larabee's kitchen is too well stocked and maintained for a bachelor."  Maude observed from her position in front of the cranberry sauce pot.

"Well, maybe he's keeping it nice for a certain someone to use in the hopefully very near future?"  Casey had to duck to avoid the projectile that Mary sent her way.

"Girls."  Miss Nettie was not about to have a food fight on her hands.  But secretly, she agreed with her niece.  Chris Larabee was definitely keeping the entire house in order, waiting for it again to be filled with the love of a good woman and the laughter of their
children.
 

Meanwhile, outside the seven friends and little Billy Travis were having a grand ole time with the horses.  Within a few short hours, Chris, Vin, JD, Buck, and Ezra had managed to break in six new horses to add to Chris's existing herd of seven.  Josiah and Nathan had elected to watch by the sidelines and to keep a hold of Billy.

"Hey, Nathan, when are ya gonna ask Rain to marry you?  Its been an awfully long time!"  Buck couldn't help himself, he just loved causing trouble.

"Not that its any of your business, Buck, but I'm just waiting for the right time."

"And when would that be?"  JD took up where Buck left off, 'a chip off the ole buck' as Buck liked to say.

"Brother Nathan will know when that will be when it happens."  Josiah said philosophically.

All this talk about marriage had Billy's ears perking up and yelling out, "Hey Chris, when are you gonna ask Ma to marry you?"

SPLASH

Chris, who was walking towards them, was so startled by Billy's question that he tripped over a rock and land face first into the horse trough!

Chris came up to find all of his so called friends laughing hysterically.  Buck was sitting on the ground, holding his ribs, JD was using the horse in front of him as support,  Vin almost fell out of the saddle he was laughing so hard, Ezra was on the ground next to Buck, tears streaming out of his eyes, and Josiah and Nathan were leaning on one another for support.

And poor little Billy, he was kneeling next to Chris, asking if he was okay.  Chris nodded in the affirmative, and then stalked to the house to change, without a word to his still laughing friends.  Just as Chris reached the back door, it swung open, courtesy of Mary.

"Chris!  What happened?"  Mary was definitely concerned but she couldn't help the twitching of her lips, Chris reminded her of a drowned cat, blond hair plastered to his head, dripping water into his crystal clear green eyes, black jeans and T-shirt cemented to his lean muscular body.  He was definitely a sight to behold.

Chris didn't answer, he just stalked past six pairs of wide eyes, and headed towards his room.

Mary and the other women gave each other wide eyed looks, each one with the same question in their minds.  As one they turned to the men who were clumsily making their way up to the house.  The remaining six men were laughing so hard that they were weaving about as if they were drunk.  When questioned, the men could only laugh harder.  The women watched as the men staggered past them, taking Billy with them to do God knows what.
 

An hour later, about 1 in the afternoon, the women were winding up the last of the meal's preparations.  Everything was about done, except for the turkey, which had about an hour and a half to go.  It was then that Mary heard a noise behind her, she dismissed it as one of the men, but when she turned to ask Rain for a knife, she found that not only was Rain, Inez, and Casey's gazes transfixed behind her, but so was Maude's.  Her curiosity won, and Mary turned to see what it was that kept her friends so enthralled.

Mary stopped breathing at the sight that greeted her.  Mary's back had been to the opened door of the laundry, which was presently occupied by a half naked Chris Larabee.  Chris only wore a pair of low riding black jeans, that weren't fully zipped up or belted.  He was also barefooted, a pair of socks was sitting on the counter next to him.  Chris was actually digging around in him 'clean' hamper for a suitable shirt, and so was bent over at the waist, giving Mary an eyeful of his really nice butt.  Mary couldn't decide what to look at:  his tight butt or his long, lean, muscular, naked torso.  Mary sighed, too sexy, much too sexy.

"Anyone else here have that song, 'Too Sexy' running around in their head?"  Rain whispered to no one in particular, but received affirmatives from all present, except for Miss Nettie.  She just grinned and then decided that they had ogled the poor boy long enough and cleared her throat. That got her four blushes and eight very busy hands.  Nettie turned to share a knowing look with Maude and they both laughed softly.

Once all of the men had changed from their dirty work clothes, they stormed the kitchen, demanding in their diversely charming ways that everyone go for a ride before dinner.  No objection was valid and the women found themselves cleaning up for a twilight ride.
 

One hour later, the fourteen riders returned to find Judge Orrin Travis and his wife Evelyn waiting for them on Chris's front porch.

"Judge!  What are you doing here?"  Vin, the first to reach the house, greeted the pair.

"Orrin!  Evie!  I thought you had been called to work!"  Mary walked up to hug her father- and mother-in-law.

"Grandma!  Grandpa!"  Billy ran to his grandparents for his hugs.

"Judge.  Mrs. Travis."  Chris tipped his black hat to both of them.

Evelyn wasn't having any of that formality and came forward to embrace the man that she hoped would soon take her son's place in Mary's and Billy's lives.  "Chris.  We're sorry to just drop in on you like this, but Orrin managed to finish his business faster than we had anticipated, and Mary mentioned that you had invited her to dinner tonight, and well, we don't want to impose. . ."

"Nonsense.  Come on inside.  There's plenty for everybody.  We made plenty, I knew with seven growing boys, we were gonna have that make a lot of food. . ."   Miss Nettie continued her monologue as she lead every one into the dinner room and then disappeared into the kitchen.

Chris, as the host, offered the Judge and Evie drinks.  Evie declined, rather opting to join the other women in the kitchen.  The Judge ordered a whiskey and Chris and Vin played bartender for the others.

A little while later, the men were given the task of setting the table while the women got the food ready.  When they finally sat down to the table, all sixteen of them, with Chris and the Judge at opposite ends of the table, Chris asked the Judge to say the blessing.

"My friends, today we gather to give thanks to the Lord for all that he has given to us this day, fine food, good health and for friends that have become family.  Thank you, Lord, for all these and more."

"Amen." Was chorused around the table and everyone turned to the business of eating Thanksgiving dinner.  Because the Judge said the blessing, Chris carved.  And when his arm started hurting from wielding the cumbersome knife, the job was turned over to Nathan, who dug in with relish.
 
 

It was half way through dinner that the first shots rang out.

Thanks to their constant training, Chris and his men were able to grab their friends and pull them down to the floor.

"Where the hell are they coming from?"  Nathan yelled out, making sure that Rain was safely under him.

"I can't tell!  I think that its coming from all around the house!"  Vin shielded Miss Nettie's smaller body with his larger one from flying glass.

"Momma!"  Billy cried out in fright.  Ezra had tackled the boy during the first volley and was keeping a tight hold on him.

"Billy, stay where you are!  Stay with Ezra!"  Mary yelled to her frantic son, then turned to look at Chris.  He had pushed her under him, effectively shielding her from any projectiles.

"Buck?  JD?  Josiah?"  Chris did a quick roll call.

"I'm fine, Chris, so's Inez!"  Buck called out.

"Me too, Chris and Casey's here with me!"

"Mother!"

"Maude and I are fine, Ezra!"

"Judge?  Mrs. Travis?"  Chris called out to his remaining guests.

"We're fine too, Chris!"

"Thank God!  That's everyone."  Mary heard Chris whisper.

"Chris!  Where are the keys to the gun cabinet?"  Vin called out from the other side of the room.  He was the closest one to the gun cabinet that Chris kept in the living room, which was just on the other side of the wall.

"In the my bedroom, just break the damn thing open!"

Vin nodded his head, and after making sure that Miss Nettie was safely under the dinner table, he crawled, snake-style, towards the guns.  Vin quickly smashed the glass and then grabbed every gun he could stuff into the bag that Chris kept there, along with lots of ammo.

"Chris! Heads up!"  Vin sailed Chris's weapon to him and then proceed to call out his teammates names, sending each at least two weapon.  After making sure that all of his fellow ATF agents had weapons, Vin distributed the rest to the Judge, Mary, and Casey.

Just in time the guns and ammo were fully distributed, because Chris and the others heard the doors being kicked in.

Chris quickly jumped into his role as leader and issued orders, "Vin, Ezra, cover the north door.  Josiah, Nathan, the south door.  Buck, JD, the window.  I want all of the women and you too, Judge, to follow me."

Without question, they followed him, on their bellies to the east wall.  Once there, Chris pushed aside the china cabinet to reveal a door in the wall.

"Mary.  Mary, listen to me.  Take everyone down into the tunnel.  It leads to a hidden hatch by a bunch of rocks.  Take my cell phone, call for back up.  And keep everyone together."  Chris stared into her wide blue eyes, making sure that she understood.  "There a couple of flashlights at the bottom of the stairs, use them.  You should only have to walk about half a mile to reach the trapdoor."  Mary nodded, understanding, but hesitated next to Chris, looking deep into his eyes, she whispered, "Please be safe."

Without thinking, Chris pulled her to him and kissed her, hard.  It was a quick kiss, an everlasting promise, and then he pushed her down into the darkness and then passed Billy to her after giving him a hug and telling him to be brave and to take care of his ma.  Once the Judge and the women were safely in the hidden tunnel, Chris and Josiah pushed the display case back into place.

JD, Vin, Ezra, Nathan, and Buck had successfully held off their attackers.  Chris sweep the room in one glance and decided their course of action.  They had to distract the attackers to give Mary and the others time to get away.

"Report!"

"Heaviest attack is from the north."  Vin reported as he returned fire.

"There's no one outside anymore Chris, I think they're all in the house."  JD called out.

"Josiah, break the window!  Everyone outside, circle back, we're gonna attack from behind!"

"But our assailants will find it strange that we are no longer returning fire!  They might be more alert to a rear assault."  Ezra advised Chris of this possible error in his plan.

"Ezra's right, Chris!"  Buck told his leader.

"Fine, I'll stay here, provide cover, everyone else, get outta here!"

"You're not staying by yourself, Chris!  I'm staying!"  Vin, damn his stubborn hide, he would want to stay wouldn't he?

"Fine, we don't have time to argue!  Ezra, Josiah, JD, the north side.  Buck and Nathan, the south.  Be careful and hurry!"  Chris watched and prayed as Buck provided cover for the other men to climb out of the window and then followed.

So while Chris and Vin pinned down their attackers, Josiah and the others made their way behind their attackers.

Actually, it was rather surprising how easily the gunmen surrendered, but then again, they must have realized that during the gun fight their numbers had dwindled and now they were outnumbered.

"Chris!  We got 'em!"  At Josiah's shout, Chris and Vin came out of the dining room to help tied up their prisoners.

They were almost done, when one of the presumed dead prisoners, suddenly pulled a gun and shot off several rounds before JD managed to stop him with a bullet to the head.

"Everyone okay?"  Vin called out.

Several "yeahs" were heard from around the room, but Vin didn't hear the one voice he needed to hear was alright.

"Chris!  CHRIS!  Where's Chris?"

The six of them looked at each other, than frantically began searching for their leader.  It was finally Ezra that found him, slumped behind the couch, bleeding.

"Nathan!  I found him!  He's been shot!"  Ezra knelt down next to Chris, gently cradling his blonde head on his shoulder.

Ezra turned to see Nathan hurrying towards him, the rest of the team in tow.  Buck was on the phone, calling for an ambulance.  Nathan began examining Chris, finding only one gunshot wound, but it was an artificial wound, it didn't hit anything important enough to knock Chris unconscious.  Nathan quickly bandaged Chris's arm, where a bullet had grazed his upper arm and he finished just as the six men heard the wailing of sirens fill the air.
 

When the police cars and ambulance converged into the house, Mary and the Judge decided that it would be safe to return. The Judge and the women returned to find several men in black fatigues being hauled into the police wagon, while paramedics were heading into the house.

"Oh, God."  Mary softly whispered, one of the seven must be hurt!  Mary's instincts screamed at her to hurry, that something was wrong.

Mary left Billy in Evie's care and then ran after the EMTs.  When she finally fought her way past all the cops, she managed to let out a sigh of relief.  All seven of them were alive, but as she got closer, Mary noticed that Chris's button down dress shirt had been pushed off his shoulders and that a EMT was next to him.

"Chris?"  Mary rushed to his side.

"Mary.  Is everyone okay?"  Chris caught Mary with uninjured arm, tucking her into his left side. Vin had to catch the ice pack that Chris had been holding with that hand and reapplied it to the back of Chris's head.

"Hmmm.  Chris, what happened?"  Mary peered around Chris, trying to see what the paramedic was doing.  Too busy evaluating Chris's injuries, Mary didn't notice that she had placed her hands on Chris's bare chest or notice the fact that she was practically straddling his thigh.  But damn if Chris didn't notice, her soft hands were burning holes in his skin and spreading heat to all sorts of body parts.  He was in pain now, the bullet graze was nothing, but he wouldn't have stopped this kind of pain for the world.

"A bullet grazed Chris's arm, Miz Mary."  Nathan, the only one of the group who had medical training, answered her.

"But his head?"  Mary waved her hand at Vin, who was still holding the ice pack to Chris's head.

"I was trying to dodge the bullets, but then I slipped and hit my head on something, nothing to worry about."  The EMT had finally finished with his arm and Chris firmly caught Mary's chin and looked into her wide blue eyes,  "Don't worry, I'm fine."

Mary smiled at him, caught in the clear green pools.

The subtle clearing of a throat brought the couple's attention back reality.  Mary and Chris turned to see the Judge standing in front of them, a small smile on his lips.

"Everyone alright?"

A chorus of 'yes, judge' was his reply.

"Good, because there's some mighty worried women and one scared little boy out there."  The Judge lead the way out the door.

Billy ran to Chris who swung him up with his left arm and wrapped his right one around Mary's waist.

Miss Nettie has her arms around Vin's waist, and from the sound of it, scolding him for God knows what.

Without thinking, Inez threw herself at Buck, wrapping her arms around his shoulders and burying her face in his neck.  Buck laughed and held on tight, easily lifting her slender frame off the ground.

JD and Casey were hugging each other, Casey's eyes were tearing and JD was trying desperately to steam their flow.  All he could think of was to hold her even tighter.

Nathan and Rain were kissing and holding onto each other tight.

Maude divided her attention between her baby boy and her strong Goliath.  She held onto Ezra tightly, not letting him see how scared she was for his life.  Ezra returned his mother's embrace, whispering assurances in her ear.  When Maude finally let Ezra go, she quickly turned to Josiah, holding on to him tightly and then she shed her tears, knowing that the gentle giant would understand.  This was the first time the Maude realized how much danger Ezra's line of work was, but she knew that he would never leave it, not as long as he had these six men by his side.  That offered the only measure of reassurance for this mother's heart.

"Well, Chris, never let it be said that your parties are in any way mundane."  Ezra drawled as he came to stand next to his leader.

"Yeah, Chris, like that time you took us fishing in the Gulf."  Vin grinned at the dirty look that Chris gave him.

"Yup, Chris, you sure do know how to celebrate holidays, like how you got shot on your birthday."  Buck couldn't help nettling his oldest friend.

"Or when you got shot on the anniversary of us becoming a  team!"  JD was getting in on the fun.

"Damn, Chris, isn't this the second time your place been shot up?"  Josiah scratched his brow, surveying the house and pretending not to know.

"Or, how about. . ."  Nathan never finished.

"Enough!  I get the idea!"  Chris looked at his circle of friends and smiled, thanking God, that for everything that had happened to them, they were still together.  What's more, one by one, their family was growing.  Josiah must have been thinking along the same lines.

"Brothers and sisters, let us give thanks this night.  Thanks for what we have and for the knowledge that we will never be alone in our endeavours in the future, for we will always have each other."

"Amen."

Finis